Stuart Horwitz of Tiverton has written an essay for the book “The Good Men Project.”

The Providence Journal / Frieda Squires

The men’s movement moves on.

This month it adds another chapter, or book in this case: “The Good Men Project,” a collection of stories by men, for men, about men.

Stuart Horwitz of Tiverton is one of them, one of 31 contributing writers, sharing his experiences with others. And he knows what many men think about that.

“Sometimes when men share their feelings they’re regarded with variations of weakness. People will say, ‘You (insert epithet here).’ ”

Horwitz shared anyway. And the book did get published, eventually.

“It was a hard sell,” says James Houghton, one of book’s three editors. “That was the message that publishers made very clear very early.”

So organizers of the book organized themselves into the Good Men Foundation, and published the paperback ($14.99) and a companion DVD ($14.99) themselves, with an official release date of Nov. 15.

“The last thing some guys want to know is what other guys think they should be doing,” Houghton says. “What I’m encouraged by are friends who begrudgingly picked up the book and read it and who said it made them think much more about their relationships with their father or being a father themselves.”

The 31 essays are divided into four chapters: Fathers, Sons, Husbands and Workers. The idea is to cover a cross section of men’s lives, and to offer a variety of perspectives: from young and old, married and single, gay and straight, black and white, and across a range of professions, although most are writers.

“If you can’t relate to one story, it doesn’t matter,” Houghton says. “You realize that we’re all in this together.”

Talk. Share. Learn from others. That, Houghton says, is what many men are missing in their lives; and it’s what “The Good Men Project” is offering.

“Women are better at talking about what’s bothering them and do it in their normal lives. They don’t have to write a big book about it.”

Of the 31 personal stories in the 251-page book, seven were chosen from hundreds of submissions in a nationwide contest. The remaining 24 stories the book’s editors found by referrals. The stories aren’t fictional, but factual. The book’s subtitle is “Real Stories from the Front Lines of Modern Manhood.”

“I do think people have stereotypes about men who don’t want to talk about their feelings,” Houghton says. “Some people think guys just want to scratch themselves, sit in front of a TV, talk about women and watch sports. And then there are the men who are touchy-feely and go off in the woods and bang drums. I think there’s a group in the middle. There are guys who may not want to reveal their deepest, darkest secrets and hug, but all guys have questions.”

Perhaps you’ll find the answers in “The Good Men Project,” Houghton says. There are stories about love and death, trauma and recovery, and, ultimately, understanding.

“We wanted to be sure that people’s stories not only had a defining moment but that there was a resolution of some sort and there was a positive action. People did something to address whatever issue they were confronting.”

Sometimes what the men did was subtle yet, Houghton says, significant. He says the story of a man who cared for his wife who died of cancer is a good example.

“The action is a guy like him writing about it. Despite his pain, he wrote this love letter.”

That’s the essence of the book, according to Houghton, to get men to share what they’re experiencing and feeling. That’s how “The Good Men Project” began. Houghton read a memoir written by his friend Tom Matlack, a co-editor of the book, along with Larry Bean. Houghton read about Matlack’s challenges in dealing with excess drinking, and the divorce that followed.

What Matlack shared about his personal life was revelatory for Houghton. “I just kept thinking about other guys I know who struggle in different ways.”

A book idea was born and the search was on for other contributors. . One of the first who came to mind was Stuart Horwitz of Tiverton. He runs a business preparing manuscripts for publication and served as a writing coach to Matlack, whom he also had as a student in one of his writing classes.

Horwitz, who had taken a poetry class with Robert Bly, the author of “Iron John” and the unofficial men’s movement leader, never considered himself a part of that movement. But he liked what the book project supported: communication among men.

“The idea of good men is somewhat ironic,” Horwitz says. “No one goes around saying they’re a good man. But you can say you want to be a good man. I’m doing that. There’s a difference between good men and guys/meatheads.”

When asked to write about a meaningful moment for him as a man, Horwitz chose a recent experience, one, he says, that was still “fresh” in his mind. It involved his daughter Fifer, now 10. She’s a singer, and very a good one, according to Horwitz; so good that when she was 8 she joined him and formed a street-music duo. For two summers they performed in Boston, New York and Newport. And Horowitz was happy.

Then Fifer decided she had had enough. She didn’t want to perform anymore. And Horwitz had to accept and respect her decision.

“If I was there to get her started, I had to be there when she wanted to end it,” he says. “This is about my acceptance.”

It’s about a father letting his daughter grow up, be her own person, and honoring her wishes and feelings. And it’s about Horwitz dealing with disappointment, and letting other fathers learn from his bitter-sweet lesson.

“This is about finding out what she wants. I want to give her a voice. What is apparent to me is you can create a community with experiences. Most decisions I’ve had to make I’ve made in my own mind.”

Horwitz welcomes a coming together of men’s minds. He says that he hasn’t been one to seek out the thoughts and experiences of other men from whom he might learn life lessons. But now, after his participation in “The Good Men Project,” he says he is.

“I think some of this is probably cultural. I do think when you try to be a good man, you are out on a plank, alone.”

“The Good Men Project” aims to bring men together, not simply by having them read a book, but also having them connect and communicate online through a blog (goodmenbook.org). There’s also a DVD about the book.

“It’s another way to get into a guy’s pea brain,” Houghton says. “Some guys don’t want to read a book. If you have some pictures, it may help.”

“The Good Men Project” celebrates its imminent release with a sold-out party Nov. 4 at the ICA in Boston. There, the one-hour documentary by Matt Gannon, which features 10 men from the book, debuts.

Horwitz has been asked if he and his daughter would attend, and perform.

“I have asked her. We did break up. I thought this might be a reunion tour. I’m in negotiations with her. We’ll see if we get together.”

brourke@projo.com